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s. 'c'. BALL.

INDEX.

AAPPLICATION FILED FEB. 10. 19:?.

Patented N ov. 19, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

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B. C. BALL.

INDEX.-

APPLICATIoN FILED FEB. lo. 1917.

Patented Nov. 19, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

CaswfspaA/ofl/cg basin ess @wom/woz TTF BERT C. BALL, OF PORTLAND, OREGON.

INDEX.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 19, 1918.

Application filed February 10, 1917. Serial No. 147,752.

To all whom 'z' may concern:

Be it known that I, BERT C. BALL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Portland, in the county 0f Multnomah and State of Oregon, have invented new and useful Improvements in Indexes, of whichv the following is a specification.

This invention relates to indexes and consists in certain improvements therein as will be hereinafter fully described and pointed oui-J in the claims.

The object of the invention is to provide an index system which will readily adapt itself to a variety of uses, as for instance, the system may be applied to a general shop and thus would be applied to the articles manufactured by the shop and utilized in filing thev correspondence, filing the drawings and other records. It is desirable to have such a system flexible enough to take in every detail Without disarranging the system and still capable of readily grouping the different subjects so as to reduce this detail within working limits. Such a system would be called a main classification and would cover the entire field of activity of such a general shop.

In the drawings Figure l shows an index sheet giving the main classification divisions or main headings.

In Fig. 2 one of the main classification divisions with its sub-divisions is here shown as the Correspondence division.

In Fig. 3 another main classication division with its sub-divisions as to articles is here shown as the Accessories division.

Under the main classification divisions, or main headings, are put all the different items making the main classification. Thus we find as one of the main headings Correspondence forming one of the main divisions, and Accessories which is carried out as another main division. Thesemain divisions will, of course, be varied to fit the nature of the business and each is designated by a symbol. Thus Correspondence, is designated by the symbol C and Accessories by the .symbol A. Each of these main divisions are sub-divided as shown on Figs. 2 and 3. Thus Correspondence is divided into a number of sub-divisions, each sub-division under the main division being Ordinarily C7 will not be repeated through the whole line but will only appeal' at the top of the column, being understood to apply as the first unit of all sub-divisions.

Some of these sub-divisions, as for instance, the sub-divisionv identified by the symbols CF will be sub-dividedr and this will ordinarily be indicated by an asterisk as shown, that is to say, Correspondence- Financial is again sub-divided and here we would have the symbol made up of the units C identifying it with the main division Correspondence, F with the sub-division Financial7 and the following unit of the symbol indicating a still further subdivision. Thus, it will beseen that the first unit or letter of a symbol will indicate the main division or main heading, the following unit a sub-division of this main heading and each following unit of the symbol a sub-division of the preceeding sub-division back to the main division. In this way the system may be carried out to any extent desired. In Fig'. 3 is shown the Accessories division and its sub-divisions as illustrative of the system. Here at the top of the column we find A being the unit of the symbol indicating that the sub-division belongs to the main division of Accessories and AB (the firstJ unit not being repeated in the column but understood) indicates Accessories-Blocks. HereL we find an asterisk in front of the symbol indicating that the sub-division AB Accessories-Blocks is again sub-divided and in the sub-division of this sub-division the symbol given to each item of the sub-division will be AB, thus making it possible to carry out the sub-division to any extent desired. Thus it will be seen that each letter or unit of a symbol is a sub-division of the letter or unit immediately preceding it. The divisions and sub-divisions, therefore,

Vmust all follow from the general to the particular with each succeeding letter or unit. As an example, let us suppose that A indicates Accessories in themain division as shown in Fig. l and B Blocks as indicated on the Accessories division in Fig. 3 and that under the sub-division of AccessorieswBlocks AB there is a sub-division S indicating Snatch Blocks, the full symbol of this would be ABS meaning that Accessories-Snatch Blocks belong to the sub-division of Blocks and to the main division of Accessories.

A feature of my invention is a grouping of two sets of symbols, one ordinarily representing matter quite different from the other, thus one indicating an abstract relationl or purpose and the other the concrete object. Taking the two sub-divisions which we have shown in Figs. 2 and 3 as an instance, the symbol OR (see Fig. 2) indicatas Sales Orders under Correspondence and the symbol AB indicating Blocks under Accessories which combined becomes OBV/AB and signifies that all sales orders for blocks are classified as OR/AB, the OR in the above mentioned symbol representing the relationaor purpose and the AB representing the subject. The vprefixes here represented as OR may not in all instances indicate purpose as they may be utilized in other connections but this illu-strates a use. An illustration indicating another relation might be made up as follows: Assuming the symbol EPL to mean Equipment Layout Templets and that this is combined with the symbol PBN meaning Plates, Ash Pans, the combined symbol EPL/BBN would signify that all templets for laying out ash pans would be classified in the general index system as EPL/BBN.

It is desirabl-e in filing with relation to some parts of the business to carry out the sub-divisions so as to give great particularity, as for instance, with drawings in an ordinary shop business. Here the classification should naturally be carried to a great refinement, but with relation to other parts l of the business such an extension of the system wo-uld,'instead of simplifying the business for which it is intended to be used, tend to complicate it and it is the flexible use or combination of symbols and the groupingv of the same that is one of the important objects of my invention. To illustrate this I have in Fig. 3 after the column indicating the sub-divisions of a main division made a series of columns which are headed by a number of prefixes, which may be used with such symbols in the first column. Thus in Fig. 3 we have the first column at the left indicating sub-divisions under the Accessories division and a series of columns headed by symbols which may be used in combination with the symbols under the Accessories division. In the matter of filing correspondence it would be undesirable and,

perhaps, impractical to separate each item and, thus such items as are ordinarily subjects ofthe same correspondence are grouped and filed together and the index as indicated in Fig. 3` shows a utilization of the prefixes -at the heads of the columns with the symbols indicating the sub-divisions and the method of grouping. Thus in the line following Blocks7 in each column we find a This indicates that all matters identified with the prexes at the top of each of the columns in which the appears are to be filed and classified as with a symbol having the prefix indicated at the top of the column combined with the symbol indicated in the line. Observing, however, the sub-division Fair Leaders indicated by the symbol AF this it is desired to group in filing under such matters as come within the prefixes at the heads of the columns Accessories-Blocks (AB) so we find in the line following Fair Leaders in each column the letters AB `The same system is used under Sipools which is Blocks Again we find under the symbol AT Trolleys Cable-ways Only and under AS Cable Way Equipment in the first three columns after the symbol AT and followingl the main symbol Trolleys Oafble Ways Only AS indicating that with all matters identified with the prefixes at the top of each of these columns the matter is to be grouped with Cable Wayk Equipment (AS). On the other hand in the fourth and fifth columns the crosses indicate that as to matters identified by the prefixes at the heads of these columns the filing is to be separate from the filing under the subdivision AS so that as to a matter comingv under the fourth column, for instance GDT/AT would be filed by itself, each unit of the prefix CDT indicating its main division Correspondence Data and the T some further sub-division of Data In this way the sub-divisions may be carried out and the utilization of the prexes may be grouped with symbols following such prefixes and said symbols may be modified with as great detail as may be desired by said prefixes.

It will be understood that these symbols will be used for filing dierentiating material filed. The index, of course, would indicate the place of filing either drawings, correspondence, or other matter and if these different parts were placed in the proper le-s in accordance with the indexes they could be readily found without carrying the index symbols on the papers themselves but for purposes of safety and ease of filing `the symbols may be carried directly to the papers or articles themselves. It will be understood that the symbols may be impressed or cast on the different articles to which the index applies. Where the index is used in connection with a shop the system of symbols runs through the articles as well as the plapers and drawings referring to the artic es.

What I claim as new is 1. An index. comprising a plurality of pages, one or more of said pages provided with main headings and symbols indicating the same constituting a main classification; the remaining pages being divided into one or more sub-divisions and ruled to provide classified with coperating columns, items located in the first column and symbols representing the same; the vremaining columns being designated by symbols of the main heading and a sub-division; and symbols in the designated columns, opposite symbols in the first column and corresponding to another symbol in the first column and indicating a grouping with said other symbols.

2. An index comprising a plurality of pages, one or more of said pages provided with main headings and symbols indicating the same constituting a main classification; the remaining pages being divided into one or more sub-divisions and ruled to provide cooperating columns with items located in the first column and symbols representing the same; the remaining columns being designated by a plurality of symbols, each symbol being made up of a symbol from the main heading and a sub-division, and symbols in the designated columns opposite symbols in the first column corresponding to another symbol in the first column and indicating a grouping with said other symbol.

3. An index comprising a plurality of pages, one or more of said pages provided with main headings and symbols indicating the same constituting a main classification; the remaining pages being divided into one or more sub-divisions and ruled to provide coperating columns having items located in the first column and symbols representing the same from said main classification and sub-divisions thereof; and the remaining columns being designated by symbols from said Classification.

4. An index comprising a plurality of pages, one or more of said pages being provided with main headings and symbols indieating the same constituting a main classification; the remaining pages being divided into one or more sub-divisions and ruled to provide cooperating columns having items located in the first column designating various articles from said classification and symbols representing the same; and a second column being designated by symbols from said classification and having a symbol therein corresponding to a first symbol in the first column and being opposite a second symbol in the first colunm and indicating a grouping of said second symbol With the first symbol in relation t0 the subject matter indicated by the designating symbols of' said second column.

5. An index comprising a plurality oi pages7 one or more of said pages being provided with main headings and symbols indicating the same constituting a main classification; the remaining pages being divided into one or more sub-divisions ruled to provide cooperating columns having items located in the first column and symbols representing the same; the remaining columns being designated by a plurality of symbols, each of said symbols made up of symbols of the main headings and a sub-division and indicating a desired grouping of said designating symbols with relation to matter indicated by other symbols in said remaining columns.

6. In an index, the combination of a plurality of first symbols each indicating an object made up of a plurality of units proceeding from the general to the particular; a plurality of second symbols each indicating a relation in which the objects are considered made up of units proceeding from the general to the particular; and an intermediate symbol indicating a grouping of the objects represented by the first symbol in the relation indicated by the second symbol.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

BERT C. BALL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for iive cents each, by addressing the commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

